The present application generally relates to an inverted bottle water dispenser, and more particularly, to water bottle dispensers that provide a convenient and simplified mechanism to access bottled water in a direct manner. With the advent of increased popularity of bottled spring water and bottled purified water here and abroad, a need may have developed for water bottle dispensers that may provide a convenient and simplified mechanism to access bottled water. Presently, water may be dispensed through a variety of dispensers. One of the most common types of water dispensers is an inverted water bottle dispenser. Currently, most of the inverted water bottle dispensers on the market are designed for use with large reusable water bottles that range in size from 3 to 5 gallons or more. Water bottle dispensers for water bottles in the size range of 3 liters to 2 gallons are not widely used, and there are only a few water bottle dispensers that are designed to use single use water bottles in the 3 liter to 1.5 gallons size. Moreover, the 3 to 5 gallons dispensers may present a number of practical placement and use restrictions and problems. Consequently, there is a need for a countertop and desktop dispenser that may accommodate 3 liter to 1.5 gallon size bottles. However, the current inverted water bottle dispensers on the market may have a reservoir container that can grow algae quickly, and the process of cleaning the algae from the reservoir containers and valves of the current dispensers on the market can be quite burdensome, as the dismantling of these dispensers for cleaning can be quite difficult and time consuming. Subsequently, there is a need for an inverted water bottle dispenser wherein the reservoir container and the valve can be easily accessed and cleaned.
Over the years, a number of U.S. patents have issued on dispensing valves/valve parts, and water dispensing devices. U.S. Pat. No. 4,293,082 issued to Shinji Matsueda shows one way in which an inverted bottle can be supported by a stand that includes a thermal insulator for the inverted bottle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,720 issued to Blomster et al. discloses a floor based inverted water bottle stand for a 5 gallons bottle. As with the Shinji patent, the Bolomster et al. is patenting the stand that supports an inverted bottle. U.S. Pat. No. 5,647,416 issued to Desrosiers et al. discloses another patent on a stand for a 5 gallons bottle that includes a reservoir and the support housing for the reservoir.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,241,126 issued to Andrew Goodman discloses a personal beverage desktop dispenser with a cubical base and valve housed therein. The male bottle threads are mated with the female threads of the base. An issue with this embodiment is that it may be difficult to invert the entire dispenser to union it with the upright bottle since the bottle valve is secured to the base. Even if the valve was not secured to the base, the valve with the handle is too large to fit through the bottle hole in the base top. It could prove rather difficult to threadably secure an entire base onto a bottle. Moreover, the base could become unsanitary rather quickly having liquid spilled within the base and it appears to be rather difficult to clean.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,527,145 issued to Jules G. Bennett, Jr. discloses a personal desktop beverage dispenser that has a base holding an inverted bottle with the bottle male threads threadably secured to the female threads of the dispenser base. An outflow valve controls the flow of bottle contents to a cup placed beneath. While this embodiment can be used with more than one bottle size it requires having to invert the entire base and threadably secure it onto an upright bottle, which could prove to be rather difficult.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,892,903 issued to Salvatore Barolotta discloses a personal beverage bottle dispenser. The personal beverage bottle dispenser requires that the entire base be inverted and threadably secured to the upright bottle in order to union the bottle with the valve.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,104,089 issued to Harold O. Seltsam, shows a self-closing lift type faucet adapted for use with water crocks, certain coolers, and beverage dispensers. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,207,472 issued Sep. 25, 1965 to Seltsam shows a tubular diaphragm valve. As with the self-closing valve, this valve is again configured for use with water crocks, certain coolers, and beverage dispensers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,583 issued to Chris V. Dolson shows an apparatus for dispensing liquids from a bottle. An inverted supply bottle with a dispenser valve attached is lowered into a slot of a dispenser base. The weight of the bottle rests upon the dispenser valve that is supported at a bottom of the base slot. The weight of the liquid in the bottle may cause the valve to leak. Additionally, the bottle is detached within the dispenser base, as the dispenser base is not formed to fit any particular shape of an inverted bottle.
U.S. Patent Application Publication 20150259188 of Christopher Lawrence Smith shows a vented tap dispenser for a liquid. The Smith embodiment is very much like the Dolson embodiment in that the weight of the inverted supply bottle is supported by the dispenser valve resting upon the dispenser base slot. U.S. Patent Application Publication 20130341355 of Kerry Lloyd Weaver shows a liquid dispensing system for laundry detergent.